The Fast Lane

I know you're not supposed to use your phone while behind the wheel, but I couldn't resist snapping a picture of my view from the driver's seat last night. Spread between Runnymede and Virginia Water the brains behind the Olympics have converted what was previously a bus lane into an 'Olympic Lane'. How about that? We're quite a way outside London, but I presume there must be a reason behind it. Rowing events, perhaps. Or maybe it was installed specifically for yours truly on his way to training. Either way I'll be driving in it as much as possible from now on.

Video Highlights from March

People have assured me that they managed to snag the videos off the BBC Red Button, but it's notoriously difficult to record so all I'm left with of my swims at the Olympic Trials in March are these clips taken on mates' phones. We'll have to make do for now, and enjoy the various noises people make when watching swimming. If smartphone resolution isn't your thing, you could scroll down to the foot of this page at the British Swimming website and click the 'Men's 50 Free Final' link, but I think the videos below have a rather more personal touch. First, here's my semi-final swim in the 50m Freestyle. I was in the first semi-final so had no idea what sort of time would suffice to qualify for the final. Even coming third didn't guarantee a swim the next day, especially in something as short and boisterous as the 50m Free. Thank you, Cags at TribeSports. (I'm in lane 1.)



My time of 22.87secs. remains my personal best time, and seeded me eighth into the Final the following night. Could I go faster and move up the ranking? I tip my hat in the direction of Mr Lowe for the video. Here it is, complete with pre-race build-up and false-start controversy. (I'm in lane 1 again.)

Splash Out

It's unlikely that any of you missed this, because of the almost global circulation claims of the Windsor and Eton Express, but here's the article they printed of my appeal for sponsorship. Unfortunately, nothing came of it (has come of it), but it was satisfying all the same. Here is the online version of the article, and if you search their buy-a-photo section you can find some more peculiar pictures of yours truly. Enjoy the weather!

Bracknell Open 2012

I competed at the Bracknell and Wokingham Level 1 Meet this weekend. With exam season very much upon us there wasn't much in the way of opposition so I came away with easy victories in both my events, the 50m and 100m Freestyle. In fact, because I knew I was going to swim more or less unchallenged I experimented with my stroke and changed my race-plans somewhat. I recruited an eager eleven year-old to record the races so I could deconstruct and analyze the swims afterwards. I won the 50m with a time of 24.02, slightly off what I would usually expect, but as you can see from the video below my stroke-rate is notably slower than normal. Similarly, in the 100m I touched with a time of 52.66, not a bad time but I was particularly interested in coming back as fast as possible during the second length. My splits were 25.3secs for the first length (roughly a second-and-a-half slower than what I regularly target) and 27.2secs for the homeward stretch. For me, splits within two seconds of each other is almost unheard of, and it shows that I can produce good back-end speed, which is something I'll undoubtedly need to draw upon in a month's time at the National Championships. Unfortunately, my eleven year-old friend got a tad overenthusiastic for the 100m, so I've just posted the 50m. If you're interested in reading the full report that I write for the paper and the club website, you can read it here (my teammate Lucy Campbell snatched the headlines this week as she competed at the European Open Water Cup in Israel last week and came away with the bronze for the 10k (!)).

I'm in the middle with the black cap.

Olympic Eligibility

Earlier this week I filled out my eligibility form for selection for the Olympics. Apparently I've made British Swimming's shortlist, which they've passed on to the British Olympic Association. Obviously it means nothing unless I actually qualify next month, but it's quite exciting all the same. I'll have another update for you in a day or so; I'm competing in Aldershot this weekend for Bracknell and Wokingham Swim Club's annual open meet. I'm only swimming in my main events, the 50m and 100m Free, and I'll let you know how I get on.

Hatfield UK Challenge

Hatfield Swimming Club held its annual UK Challenge meet this weekend, and it always promises to attract some of the fastest swimmers in the region. For a kick-off I swam the 100m Freestyle and touched with a new personal-best time of 50.22. I would have liked to dip under the 50 second barrier for the first time, but I had a terrible dive and given my training schedule at the moment I can't be displeased. Later on Sunday I focussed on my main event, the 50m Free. As in the 100m, I was racing against Adam Brown, an old nemesis of mine, and someone who holds the British Records in both the 50m and 100m Free, and has already qualified for the London Olympic Team. I put in a decent performance and finished with another new best time of 22.81, but frustratingly placed second behind Adam. You can count with one hand the number of people in history who have ever been faster than he has over 50yards Freestyle, so I'll settle for silver (for now). He also tells me that he'll be competing at the June trials to qualify for the 50m Free at the Olympics, just like me. Game on. You can watch the video of the final below. It's a bit blurry and shakey, but that's me in lane 5 with the white cap, Adam is in lane 4, and Windsor teammate Oliver Leonard goes in lane 6. For the full meet report that I write for the paper each week, click this link.

Regional Championships

I've just wrapped up a good weekend's racing at the South-East Regional Championships, jointly held between Crawley and Guildord, both of which boast 50m pools. On day one I picked up Gold in the 50m Free with a decent time of 23.77. Irritatingly, I got ran down in the 100m Free and touched-out by just five hundredths of a second. I've posted the video below. (Never underestimate your opposition.) Nonetheless, I was happy with the time - 52.11, which is the fastest I've been all season besides the first round of the Olympic Trials in March. To round things off, I competed in the 200m Free yesterday and took Silver in the final. It's not an event I normally take very seriously, but it's good conditioning, and the time I posted (1.57.2) is the fastest I've been in a very long time, since the days of the ultra fast bodysuits. Things are coming along nicely. Here is the full meet report that I wrote for the club website and the local newspaper. Next weekend I compete in Hatfield, which holds a short-course (25m) meet every year, and it's sure to be extremely fast. Wish me luck!

I'm in lane 5 with the white cap.

Thank You

Hello and welcome to my site. I've set this up to document my run-in to the London Olympics as a way of thanking those of you who responded to my appeal for sponsorship and came to my aid. I am extremely grateful for every card and letter wishing me luck, and for all the cheques, whether large or small, that make my dream a possibility. I cannot thank you enough. On this site I'll post updates and reports to keep you abreast of my progress between now and the Games.

Many of you have asked me to set up a donations page, which proved difficult, but if you would like to donate click the link in the top right corner and you'll be directed straight to Paypal. Also, if you would like to view my complete sponsorship profile, email me at the address below and I'll send it your way.

robmattstroud@hotmail.com